Well drilling pipe



Slept. 9, 1952 J, E SMH-H 2,619,028

WELL DRILLING PIPE Filed OCC. 25, 1947 Patented Sept. 9, 1952 I UNITED STATES PATENT oF WELL DRILLING PIPE James E; Smith, Pasadena, Tex.

Application October 25, 1947, Serial No.

3 Claims. (C1. 255 28) My invention relates to an improved drill pipe more especially intended for drilling oil, gas or ployed during well drilling.

The object of my invention is the provision of a drill pipe or drill having an air space or air receiving chamber and a drilling mud or fluid conveying separate passage; the outer pipe portion being provided with valve controlled communications with the pipe exterior whereby the pressure in the air space or chamber `may be automatically varied The objects 4and advantages of my invention will be readily eomprehended from the detailed description of the accompanying` drawing wherein: l

Figure l is a longitudinal sectional view of my ment t the adjacent pipe or pipe section.

Figure 2 isha cross-sectional View taken substantially along the line 2-2 of Figure 1 looking downwardly.

In oil well drilling and particularly in present day deep well drilling considerable diiiiculty is drical wall 5, an inner or conduit forming wall 6; the inner Wall 6 chamber 9 between the hubs l-and 8;

.The end walls are of comparative thicknessg* while the lower hub or end is formed with a boss or nipple portion Il, externally' threaded and tapered toward the outer end. Y

The tapered threaded hole IG `at the Well to be drilled. I contemplate of suitable metal and preferably openings for passage of the drilling uid or mud therethrough.

making my improved `drill pipe where the fluid and the ends of the or lower end of the central passage in nipple portion H lation with the end ceding section C.

With all of the walls welded or intimately united, each unit or pipe section is provided with an air chamber extending throughout the length of the section; the chamber being intended to be provided with air under a predetermined degree of pressure whereby the pipe may have a certain amount of weight compensating or lifting buoyancy.

the lower end wall S and its and arranged in abutting re- 6a of inner pipe e of the prepipe a terminates within the One of the end walls, preferably the lower hub or end wall 8 of each section, in the shoulder or body portion thereof is provided with a valved outlet or'vent port I2, leading from the section exterior to the chamber 9 and provided with a spring controlled ball or check valve as at e, normally held closed against outward iiow from the chamber; the valve being adapted to maintain a predetermined pressure in the chamber said valve, however, moving to open position when the pressure exceeds a predetermined degree.

' The opposite side of the end wall or hubA 8 also is shown provided with a valve controlled port ifi having a suitable spring controlled ball valve l5, closable against outflow from the pressure chamber 9.

Before lowering the pipe section into the well, air is forced through the valve controlled port i4 and chamber 9 provided with suiiicient pressure to prevent collapsing of the outer side walls when the drill pipe is subjected to increased pressures as it recedes into the Well.

As the depth of the well increases, the pressure on the fluid'in the well also increases. The amount of pressure ,placed in the air space S is intended to be approximately what the pipe section will stand without bursting pipe 5,- or collapsing the inner pipeV 6; the spring closed valve i3 being provided to give relief of the pressure in chamber 9 before such high pressure is reached that would damage the pipe section. Upon reaching a depth pressure in the well exceeds the pressure in air chamber 9, some drilling fluid may enter through intake valve l5, further compressing the air in each pipe section. Upon raising or bringing the pipe out of the well and the pressure on the fluid in the well becomes less than the compressed air in chamber 9, the compressed air in chamber 9 will then expel the uid through outlet or vent valve I3 until the air pressures in the respective chambers 9 have been lowered to their originally inflated pressure.

Inner pipe sections 6 is extended in the upper or box end of the joint or section and into the enlarged opening in the lower or pin end of the adjoining section.

In ordery to ensure fluid tight connections between the"v respective pipe sections I show the pipe receiving opening in the boss or nipple portion H of the bottom end wall or hub of each pipe section provided with one or more annular grooves to receive the sealing rings le which are adapted to effect snug relation with the inserted end a of the inner pipes of the respective sections. Y

In the event--due to great pressure--the mud or drilling fluid should leak past the seal rings g boss or nipple portions il andin order to prevent such leakage aboutthe threaded connections', I provide the nipple receiving end wall 'l with one or more holes or-vent ports l1, leading fromthe threaded interior of the end wall to the section exterior. With these vent openings Il the drilling mud or fluid will be prevented from passing about the threaded portions so that the latter will not be subjected to the abrasive action of the fluid or mud which might result in severing the connections or seriously damaging the joints between the respective pipe sections.

I have shown and described what is believed to be the best embodiment of my invention in a more or less buoyant drill pipe but, as is apparent, the specific method shown for providing the desired pressures in the pipe chamber may be varied or altered without, however, departing from the spirit of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

l. A well drilling pipe composed of cylindrical unitsfof prearranged length adapted to be successively screwed end to end, each unit comprising a fluid conveying pipe extending from end to end, an outer shell surrounding and spaced from the fluid conveying pipe,.and end wall members intimately secured to both ends of said pipe and said shell whereby the latter are united in spaced relation and an encircling air chamber provided extending from end to end, one end wall member on its outer end face Ahaving an internally threaded socket about the end of the fluid conveying pipe while the other end wall member has an externally threaded boss, said socket, disposed beyond the end of the fluid conveying pipe a distance corresponding to the depth of the socket at the first mentioned end and adapted to screw into the threaded socket in the end of the adjacent unit and thereby bring the Socket surrounded end of the pipe of the succeeding unit into abutting relation with the pipe of the preceding unit; a self-closing valve controlled port in one of said end wall members leading chamber whereby a pressure medium may be introduced into said chamber; and an automatically controlled vent port in said end wall member leading from said chamber to the unit exterior whereby excess pressure in said chamber automatically vent to atmosphere.

2.' A well drilling pipe composed of a plurality of similar sections adapted to be successively screwed end to end, each section consisting of an inner fluid conveying pipe, an outer pipe, and rigid end members whose outside diameters and the outside diameter of the outer pipe are the same so as to provide a smooth uninterrupted outer face, said members being intimately secured to the ends of the outer pipe and bored to receive the ends of the inner pipe and integrally secured to both of said pipes to provide a pressure medium receiving chamber between the pipes, one end member having on its outer face an internally threaded socket about and exposing the end of the inner pipe while the other end member beyond the end of the inner pipe has an externally threaded boss correlated to and adapted to screw into the threaded socket of the opposite end or" an adjacent section and bored to receive the exposed portion of the inner pipe of said adjacent section, the bore in said boss having sealing rings for said'pipe portion; the end member with said socket being provided with one or more radially disposed ports leading from the bottom of said socket kto* the member exterior; and self -closing ports in one of said end members leading from the member exterior into said pressure chamber; one of said ports automatically correlated to from the wall exterior to said outer wall member closing against outow from said vchamber while the other port is automatically closable against inow into said chamber.

3. Well drilling pipe sections each formed with an inner fluid conveying conduit member extending from end to end, an outer wall member of greater diameter arranged in with said conduit, and end wall members, the outer wall member and the end wall members being of the same external diameters to provide the section with an uninterrupted outer surface; the end wall members being intimately attached to both ends of the conduit member and to the whereby a closed cylindrical chamber between the conduit member and the outer member is provided; one end wall member having an internally threaded socket into which one end of the conduit member extends, while the other end wall is provided with an externally threaded and centrally bored boss into which the other end of the conduit member extends partway, said boss also being adapted to receive the opposite end of the conduit member of the adjacent section, said bored boss being REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,660,714 Lincoln Feb, 28, 1928 1,712,803 Wood May 14, 1929 1,746,132 Stokes Feb, 4, 1930 1,781,049 Brinton Nov., 11, 1930 1,801,788 Zublin Apr. 21, 1931 2,259,191 Allen Oct. 14, 1941 

